In the Fall of 2016, during the middle of my exhibition index, at the Portland Museum of Art (PMA), I decided it would be a good idea to go to Japan, a place I have always wanted to visit. I normally do not go away and photograph but I thought I might try making some photographs of nature while there.
This came out of seeing my own 1987 Gilsland Farm photos on exhibit at the PMA — large square medium format mural photographs (see last 4 photos in Maine). I brought my Rolleiflex camera and size 120, both color and black & white film. I also shot with my iphone and a plastic 35 mm camera for fun. Upon return, as I suspected, I liked the black & white medium format results the best. I developed the film at home and cleaned up my make-shift basement darkroom enough to make contact sheets and small work prints.
Kyoto Japan, 2015
The darkroom! I had forgotten how much fun it truly is; and how physically engaging it felt to work in this familiar manner. Not since the early 1990's in making the 4x5 inch Maine Grange exteriors and later, in the detail composites of the interiors (see Maine Grange) have I seriously shot in black & white.
In assessing the Japan photographs, I thought — well, ok nature, I’m in Maine . I think I'll go for a walk !
Georgetown, Maine, 2016
I am continuing to explore my adopted home state of Maine and I am totally enjoying the process. I also continue to work on the NYC pinhole photographs, color negative 4x5 inch film, filling in the areas I have not covered geographically and reassessing what I need to do to finish this project.